A Day In the Life of a New Air Force Wife

Steven and I met when we were 14 and in the same gym class in junior high. We met in my hometown in Alaska where his dad was stationed. We became best friends, although I always had stronger feelings for him than just as a friend. Finally during our freshman year of high school, he officially asked me out. Being the quirky, adorable guy that he is, he couldn’t just ask me. Instead, he typed it out on the score screen at a night out bowling with our friends. We’ve been together ever since; almost 7 years now. I don’t remember what life is like without him and I don’t ever want to imagine it.

Steven always talked about the Air Force. A military brat himself, he knew the lifestyle but I didn’t think I could handle it. Finally, after years of batting the idea back and forth, he enlisted at 21. On New Years, in downtown St. Louis, just as the clock struck midnight, and with the fireworks booming in the background, Steven got down on one knee and asked me to marry him. We got married February 27th, 2009 and 12 days later, my new husband left for basic training. He is currently in tech school and we have about 3 more months to go before he finishes.

July 9th, 2009

It’s 2:37 am and I am laying in bed, listening to my own MySpace song for the millionth time. Why Makes Perfect Sense by Wade Bowen. To my right is our cat, Tawny, and on my left is the teddy bear Steven bought me at BMT graduation; Bearman Katsonis, complete with his own set of ABUs and dog tags. I know I should be asleep already because I have to work at my cashier job at Lowe’s at 6 am, but tonight our bed feels emptier than usual.

Eventually I drift off and next thing I know it’s 5:24 am and I am throwing on some jeans and a t-shirt, running out the door and driving to work. I put on my red mesh vest and stand in front of the self checkout lane where I’ll be for the next 4 hours. Anything to help pass the time. I talk to my friend and coworker Shelly about our big move coming up; Steven and I are being PCSed to England. I think she’s even more excited than I am, as we discuss London; all the tourist spots in Europe, how we’ll keep in touch and all of the great things I’ll get to see. I call Steven during my break. He’s just gotten out of class and final form. He’s on midshift which runs from 9:30 pm until around 8 am. For fifteen minutes, he excitedly tells me about all he’s learning, how he actually got to get into the cockpit of an F-15, and how tired he is. But break time is up, so we end the call with “I love you’s” and it’s back to work.

I end my shift by writing my notice to the HR and administrative managers. August 6th will be my last day working, so I can spend a week in Texas visiting him, go to my hometown in Alaska to see my family, and then come home to prepare for the move. I get home from work and try to call Steven though I’m sure he is deep asleep by now anyway. As his voicemail picks up, I climb into bed. After such a short night of sleep I am more than ready for this nap!

I wake up 3 hours later, get online and check to see if he has emailed me back from the previous night, MySpace to see what my friends back in Alaska are up to, and go to MSOS and another private online forum. I have a lot of friends online who are as much a part of my support circle as my lifelong friends back home. I’ve made many tearful threads and I think I’ve received more virtual hugs than real in the past 6 months. I’m so grateful to have one forum of fellow military SOs who know how I feel, and another full of friends I’ve known throughout mine and Steven’s entire relationship.

It’s getting closer to 5 pm, which is typically when Steven wakes up but I think he’s extra tired today. It’s hard not to call him, but as much as I’d like to talk to him, I know he needs sleep for class again tonight.

I head to the commissary with my cell phone ready in my back pocket in case he calls. I pick up yogurt, apples, grapes, random lunch items, and ingredients for cookies. I’m going to try my hand at some cute camoflauge sugar cookies this weekend; something I saw on MSOS. I think Steven will really enjoy them if I manage to get the colors right. Even though he’s just at school and has access to the commissary himself, I like to send him periodic care packages because he loves my cookies and baking has always been a stress reliever for me.

When I finally get home, I call him and he’s awake, but studying for his big block test tonight. So I munch on some string cheese and text friends until he calls back. We get onto MSN and get to chat on our webcams for an hour or so, which is always the best part of my day. We talk about work and his classes, the 110 degree weather in Texas (a record high today!), how much we miss each other and what our plans are for tomorrow. Our cat snuggles up on my lap so she can say hi too. Every so often he cracks jokes or makes funny faces at the camera. I smile, though my heart is aching from missing him so much.

After an hour or so of chatting, it’s time for him to get ready for class. We blow kisses, wave goodbye, and shut down messenger. I finally excuse myself from the computer so I can make some dinner. It’s already 9 o’clock! As I preheat the oven, he calls. We talk for about 5 more minutes until he says, “Alright baby, I’ve got to go down stairs now. We’ve gotta fall out and head to the dining facility.” After another set of “I love you’s,” he’s gone for the night.

I curl up on the couch downstairs with my frozen pizza and switch the TV to Real World: Cancun. Our bedroom TV doesn’t work anymore. Somehow I’ve managed to mix up all the wires and seeing as he’s the technology geek, it’ll have to wait for him to get home to be fixed. I get on my laptop one last time and check my MySpace. I do my nightly ritual of logging on, viewing my own profile, listening to our song which plays in the background, and checking the countdown ticker at the bottom: “7 months, 2 weeks & 4 days until our 1st wedding anniversary.” It’s bittersweet because it reminds me how much time has passed since he left and how much closer we are to being together again, but also how little time we’ve spent together since our wedding day. Oh well though, what’s several months apart compared to a lifetime together? I remind myself of the big picture as I send him a text message to arrive home to. “Missyouwantyouneedyouloveyou“, which is one of our favorite little sayings for one another.

I shut off the TV, head up to bed, throw on his blue and purple striped boxers, and plug in my cell phone. It won’t ring until 8ish tomorrow morning, but I like for it to be charged and set on the highest volume just in case. I snuggle up to Bearman and say a little prayer in my head, asking that Steven does well on his test, that the time may pass a little quicker, and thanking God for blessing me with this life. Somedays it’s hard to add that appreciation to the end of my prayer – but when my phone rings in the morning and I hear my husband’s voice at the other end, I quickly remember why I chose this life, why I get out of bed each morning, why we are so patiently waiting for the rest of our life together to finally begin; because why makes perfect sense.

Breanna